Tim Masters at CU-Boulder: 'I had to keep fighting until I was dead or I got out'

Released after decade in prison, Masters speaks about wrongful conviction

Tim Masters, who served a decade in prison for a homicide he didn't commit, told an audience at the University of Colorado Law School on Thursday that he's not resentful about his wrongful conviction.

"I had years in prison to be bitter and angry," he said. "The best revenge is to try and live as good of a life as I can and not let them have any more of my life."

Masters, along with his post-conviction attorney Maria Liu and legal experts, held a discussion sponsored by the Colorado Innocence Project, which is housed in CU's law school.

Masters was convicted of killing Peggy Hettrick, of Fort Collins, in 1987. He was released from prison in 2008 after DNA evidence overturned his conviction.

"His case highlights this problem: What do we do about innocent folks in prison?" said Pat Furman, a former defense attorney and professor emeritus at CU who moderated the discussion.

Masters said he's writing a book chronicling his case that he expects to be published in about a year.

He told the CU audience that he shut down his emotions because if he dwelled on the fact that he was in prison despite being innocent, it would have driven him crazy. He said that growing up, his father taught him to be mentally tough.

"I had to keep going," Masters said. "My family was out there, and they knew I was innocent. I had to keep fighting until I was dead or I got out."

Liu said one of the biggest obstacles for inmates is their inability to obtain documents related to their cases.

In Masters' case, a person who watched an episode of the A&E television series "Cold Case Files" about the Hettrick murder began writing to Masters and gathering documents.

Masters won a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against the city of Fort Collins and Larimer County. He's also received private and public apologies from officials involved in the original case.

Asked by an audience member about his transition back into society, he responded that it was easy because he has a supportive family.

"I'm just trying to enjoy my life," he said. "I have a couple of business ventures, I'm working on cars in my spare time and I got a dog."

The discussion surrounding innocence included the pressure on law enforcement to close cases, which can lead to unwarranted arrests.

Also, there is a heavy volume of innocence pleas -- many of which are unfounded, said Bill Nagel, an adjunct faculty member at CU and former assistant district attorney in Boulder.

"This case is a terrible situation, and it's a terrible thing to hear about," he said. "One of the problems, though, is that there are lot of people filing post-conviction motions without any grounds."

The Colorado Innocence Project was founded in 2001 by Colorado lawyers led by Jim Scarboro. In 2010, the project moved to its current home at Colorado Law.

First-year students help on the administrative end, replying to inmates with applications for their cases to be reviewed. Second- and third-year students begin investigating the cases, interviewing witnesses, attorneys who worked on the case, victims and others involved. Then, if the case gets picked up by an attorney, the students can help work on it pro bono.

Ann England, an associate clinical professor of law who heads the project, said "the potential of innocence" drives her.

She said the project receives a few letters every day, and, combined, students are working on about 30 cases.

"Watching the students interact with this material and these cases has been great," she said. "It's a good learning experience. It helps shape what they want to do with their lives."

MacIntyre feels Colorado is capable of making run at bowl gameCU BUFFS FALL CAMPWhen: 29 practices beginning Wednesday morning 8:30-11 a.m. Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday practices are open to the media and public next week. Full Story

It didn't take long for Denver music observers to notice Plume Varia. Husband and wife Shon and Cherie Cobbs formed the band only two years ago, but after about a year they started finding themselves on best-of lists and playing the scene's top venues. Full Story